Redbirds Ride Five-Match Win Streak in Linda Herman Volleyball Classic

NORMAL, Ill. - Amid a five-match win streak, the Illinois State volleyball team hosts the 2026 Linda Herman Volleyball Classic, as the Redbirds entertain the Western Illinois Leathernecks, the Lindenwood Lions, and the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons over the weekend of September 11-13.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Friday, September 11
    2 p.m. - Lindenwood vs Purdue Fort Wayne - WATCH | STATS
    6 p.m. - Illinois State vs Western Illinois - WATCH | STATS
Saturday, September 12
    1 p.m. - Purdue Fort Wayne vs Western Illinois - WATCH | STATS
    5 p.m. - Illinois State vs Lindenwood - WATCH | STATS
Sunday, September 13
    1:30 p.m. - Illinois State vs Purdue Fort Wayne - WATCH | STATS

QUICK HITTERS

• With her 18 kills in the weekend opener in Michigan, freshman Jillian Ferrill became one of just four freshmen in the country with 18+ kills in a three-set match this season in the NCAA, and is tied for the 21st most in a three-set match regardless of class
• The Redbirds are 5-1 for the first time since the 2019 team opened the season 7-1
• Ruth Ziegler's eight service aces on September 4 are the second-most in school history, and also tied for the second-most in an NCAA match this season, regardless of number of sets played
• Ziegler, in addition to being named to the Seton Hall Tournament All-Tournament Team, was also named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week
• Illinois State has won its last seven matches inside the state of Michigan, with the last loss coming during the 2009 season
• Prior to her team's opening game of the season, Illinois State head volleyball coach Allie Matters - who was returning to play the tournament at her alma mater - was announced as a member of the 2027 class of the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame
• When Illinois State plays at the Oakland Invite Volleyball Tournament, Abby Reck will play against each of her younger sisters, as one of her younger twin sisters (Molly) plays at Oakland, and the other twin (Mallory) plays for Marist. The three of them were all High School teammates with Illinois State setter Ella Craggs
• Illinois State junior opposite Ruth Ziegler was named to the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason All-Conference Team
• The Redbirds were picked to finish sixth of 11 schools in the 2026 MVC Preseason Coaches Poll
 

BALANCING STRENGTH WITH FINESSE

This season, Illinois State junior Ruth Ziegler ranks third in the MVC in hitting percentage, and 12th in kills per set. She is one of three players in the conference to rank inside of the top-15 in each of the categories.

YOUNG GUNS

When Jillian Ferrill knocked down a career-high 18 kills against Central Michigan on September 4, she became one of just four freshmen in the country this season to record that many kills in a three-set match.
 

OPENING PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Illinois State junior opposite Ruth Ziegler has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week for the opening week of MVC play, announced by the conference office on Monday afternoon. Named to the Seton Hall Tournament All-Tournament Team, Ziegler is one of two players in the MVC to rank inside of the top-10 in both hitting percentage (third) and kills per set (ninth). She is a strong part of the Redbird offense that leads the MVC in hitting percentage after the first week of the season, including back-to-back matches hitting over .300 to close the Seton Hall Tournament (Illinois State had two of the three matches during the week in which a team hit .300 or better). Her three service aces against Fairleigh Dickinson are a career-high, and the first of her collegiate career, while her 12 kills in the finale are tied for the fourth-most in a three-set match in the MVC through the opening week, and her 17 points are the most in a three-set match in the conference. She is an integral part of ISU's .419 attack percentage against NJIT, which is the 24th-highest attack percentage in the country over the opening weekend of the year.

SERVING INTO THE TOP 25

Behind a flurry of service aces over the past weekend, the Illinois State Redbirds have climbed into the top-25 in the NCAA in aces per set. The Redbirds average 2.20 aces per set, the 21st-most in the NCAA this season.
 

ACES ABOUND FOR RUTH

The Redbirds have hit .300 or better in each of their last two matches (.419 against NJIT and .301 FDU), tied for the ninth-longest streak of such matches in program history. Last season the Redbirds had a streak of three consecutive .300 matches. The school record for consecutive matches hitting .300 or better came in 2003 with four.
 

ILLINOIS STATE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT-ATHLETES

This season, with two international student-athletes on the roster (Emilija Arsic from Belgrade, Serbia, and Oliwia Caputa from Zwiec, Poland), it marks the fourth consecutive season that the ISU volleyball roster has had at least two international players on it. The Redbirds have had at least one international student-athlete every season since 2020.

RETURNING THE SETTERS

Illinois State returns each of its top two assist leaders last season, as Ella Craggs had 671 and Audrey Clark had 475. The duo's total - 1,146 - is the most of any returning pair on the MVC, with the Belmont duo of Jordan Czajkowski and Alivia Keegan sitting just behind the Redbirds with 1,120. There are just four schools in the MVC to return two setters with 200+ assists.

REDBIRDS PICKED SIXTH

The Illinois State volleyball team has been selected to finish sixth in the MVC, according to the conference's preseason coaches poll. Northern Iowa was picked to finish first, earning 119 points and nine first place votes, while Drake and UIC picked up the two remaining first place votes. Five other schools: Bradley, Evansville, Indiana State, Murray State, and Southern Illinois were picked behind Illinois State; however, those results were not made available to the public.